George Steinbrenner: An ownership archetype for all-time, RIP

The Yankees, along with a few other big-spending teams, of course must send revenue-sharing checks to MLB annually. Every other penalized team just sends it in electronically, without comment, like paying rent.

Not the Yankees. I heard that, in the history of the revenue-sharing rule, the Yankees have always sent in an actual check, signed by Steinbrenner, stapled to a note that says, and I parapharse, “This is illegal and outrageous,” or something like that.

I love it. What other team/owner would do that?. Maybe only Al Davis, and if Al does do something like that to the NFL, please someone tell me.

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–I guess it’s not strange–though it now feels that way–that a few days ago I was thinking about George Steinbrenner and his enormous place in the sports landscape.

Actually, I thought about him twice–in conjunction with both the Giants situation and the LeBron James tempest, and when I thought of ownership-style contrasts, it was always Steinbrenner my mind raced to, first and only.

Steinbrenner died early this morning, at 80, and now we’re all thinking about him plenty.

Steinbrenner’s the archetype for gargantuan spending and loud, insistent, knee-jerk and at times bullying ownership… and maybe not coincidentally, also for success, controversy and fascination.

No one’s like him now. No one ever will be, or probably should be. We’ll just see tiny little reflections of Steinbrenner here and there–Jerry Jones, Mark Cuban (Dallas has interesting owners), maybe, at vast discount-rate, Jeffrey Loria.

Of the North American major sports owners now, the last of the original archetypes is Al Davis (who turned 81 on July 4, born exactly one year before Steinbrenner). But we knew that.

And now Steinbrenner is gone and his presence remains. Not much has changed, has it? He’s looms that enormously and, I presume, always will.

First time I thought of Steinbrenner recently was when I was writing about the Giants’ big picture.

I briefly contemplated the possibility that Bill Neukom could fire Brian Sabean and Bruce Bochy at some near point–if things didn’t go well into late-July–and decided that was not at all Neukom’s style.

I wanted a quick way to explain that, and the best way was: Neukom’s no Steinbrenner.

It didn’t end up in the column because I didn’t want to seem perjorative–either for Neukom or Steinbrenner, who we all knew was in failing health–and I also didn’t want to type out several more sentences explaining the reference, just in case I was asked to.

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But that’s what I was thinking and it really was the best comparison to use.

For better or worse, Steinbrenner is the ur-example of an owner who is never satsified, who demands victories, who seems to enjoy publicly pricking at his highest-paid employees, and who is willing to pay what it takes to create the fastest path to both, sometimes making mistakes, sometimes creating mini-dynasties.

He signed Reggie Jackson and Catfish Hunter away from the A’s in the first titantic sweep of free agency in major American sports. Just that, alone, would be an indelible legacy.

And George did much more than that.

More recently, I thought of Steinbrenner again after the LeBron Decision, or really, directly after Cleveland owner Dan Gilbert’s ferocious statement blasting LeBron James after James announced his departure for Miami.

That was odd. That was hardly constructive–in fact, it was probably self-destructive. That was a pure public wail by a very rich man, which can often be uncomfortable to hear.

Who was that like? Obviously, that was an echo of Steinbrenner’s instant rage and compulsion to take to the bully pulpit.

I remember when I was an intern in New York in the mid-1980s, and the scariest assignment I got was one evening of the Steinbrenner Watch–stand outside Yankee Stadium where he walks in, see what he has to say (about the particular controversy of the day, which I cannot remember now).

I stood out there, hoping George wouldn’t show up, or at least would take a path that would eliminate my having to step in front and ask a question or two. I am not a sheepish sort, but I didn’t want to do this.

I don’t think Steinbrenner showed up that night. I didn’t see him. Never interviewed him once in my life.

But that night, even though he wasn’t there, Steinbrenner’s presence filled Yankee Stadium. It was about Bob Sheppard’s voice and Steinbrenner’s whole being.

Now that the sports world has lost both men in stunning succession, things seem fairly empty. Other men have already taken their places, the game goes on, but it’s a lot quieter.

RIP.

( I don’t know what kind of tribute they’ll do at the All-Star Game tonight, but it should definitely involve Reggie Jackson, Joe Torre & Derek Jeter.)

Tim Kawakami

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When it comes to George Steinbrenner, if I may steal a phrase, “I only know what I read in the papers”. Before the Giants came to SF I and my father were Yankee fans and I still root for the Yankees except when they play the Giants. I don’t care that many anti Yankee fans complain about George Steinbrenner buying World Series Championships, they are just jealous, I wish the Giants would buy a couple. I never understood why so many people “Hate a Winner” like the Raider fans hate the Niners for winning more Super Bowls then the Raiders. Listening to them complain you’d think it was a violation of some law. All of you who complain about the Yankees are just losers. Go climb back under your rocks!

Boston Red Socks fans are the worst of all. They win one World Series in recent history and you’d thin they had been there every year. I’d rather have George running the Giants then what we have now. Kneukom doesn’t know “squat” about base ball or winning. He is a lawer he knows the law, just because he is rich doesn’t mean he knows base ball. You and I know more about base ball then he does.

Stienbrenner was a winner and expected his players to EARN their money or else! Rowand wouldn’t have lasted past his first year with George. He would never have signed the players Sabean chose either. He would have fired Sabean three years ago. Botchit Bochy would have never seen the managers job either.

I don’t know what happens after death, but if anything does I hope Goorge Stienbrenner is in a good place.

Kitty Kat

I thought that George Steinbrenner was one of the most deplorable human beings in the modern history of American sports. A real crumb as a person and he will not be missed. They always say that you learn a lot about a person’s character by the way they treat the people who are beneath them, and as it is well documented, Steinbrenner was a demeaning bully to people who had the misfortune of being beneath him. When somebody famous dies, the media almost invariably will try to gloss over their faults, and even this morning I heard a baseball commentator on ESPN talk about how Steinbrenner’s Yankees had written luxury tax checks to the smaller teams to help their franchises, as if this was some example of his generous largesse. These checks went to smaller market teams that USED to be competitive and win championships like the Royals and the A’s, before Steinbrenner selfishly tilted the playing field in his favor and helped ruin the competitive balance of what used to be America’s favorite game. These are luxury tax checks, it is now clear, that he HATED to have to write, because like a selfish pig in slop, he wanted to keep every dime for himself.

In Steinbrenner’s perfect world, major league baseball would always be a rigged card game, where his Globetrotters dispatched the hapless Washington Generals (A’s, Twins, Mariners, Royals, etc) night after night. He could never have acheived the same level of sustained success in other sporting leagues because of rules that ensure fairness among all participating teams. He cut lucrative television contracts for the Yankees — despite the fact that there IS no league without the other teams to play against — and wanted to keep everything for himself. Compare that with the vision and magnanimousness of a great NY owner like Wellington Mara, who agreed to a television revenue sharing deal in the 1960′s that made the NFL the most popular sports league in America. A league where a team like Green Bay can win a championship, playing in a very small market.

I don’t even want to revisit the horrors of the early Steinbrenner years and the appalling treatment he bestowed upon really classy men like Dick Howser and Bob Lemon. Or on his GMs. Or his players, who he treated without much respect. Think about great championship-winning owners like Art Rooney, or Lamar Hunt, or Franklin Mieuli, and then compare them to somebody like Steinbrenner. And how about the Dave Winfield incident? Could you see an owner like Bob Lurie, or Walter Haas hiring a private detective to dig up dirt on a player to discredit him in the media ? How sleazy was that? This guy was a real ZERO.

If you believe in reincarnation, it would be only just if Steinbrenner would be forced to return to this world in a lower station than the one he occupied in this past life, so perhaps he could be the one dumped upon by some small-minded, bullying creep like he was. Good riddance to that clown, and the human race just got elevated a notch with his welcome exit from the earth.

http://eyemsick.blogspot.com/ Bigmouth

I, too, thought of King George when I read Dan Gilbert’s letter re Lebron!

That Man

damn kitty katt. Got eeeem

http://www.robertphoenix.com dominmatrix

Kitty Kat 1 George Steinbrenner -1.

Way-to-go-Kat. . . .

SJMark

I appreciate what he did for the U.S. Olympic Committee, given that we don’t have government subsidies for our olympians.

… ironic since the baseball anti-trust exemption is the biggest Yankee subsidy of all …

Grey Warden

Moving on…..TK hurry up and get your sources to confirm if tonight will be the night a new Warriors owner is announced!

Johnny Rocket

Wow…angry kitty. Can you imagine what people are gonna say when Al Davis dies?

Nicholas

Amazing how Kitty Kat’s statement is so much more articulate and meaningful than the pro-Steinbrenner posting that precedes it. Nice work, Kat.

safoo

[TK]I love it. What other team/owner would do that?. Maybe only Al Davis, and if Al does do something like that to the NFL, please someone tell me.[/TK]

Can’t find the source but pretty sure I read on Jerry Mac’s blog few years ago:

NFL teams send a fax after each game to the NFL listing plays that should be reviewed for officiating. In their weekly fax, the Raiders’ cover letter has a picture of Tom Brady being hit by Charles Woodson (the tuck rule play).

prima facie

Any truth to the rumor that George Steinbrenner, as soon as he got to the other side, fired Billy Martin, just for old time’s sake?

Rowand’s Gamertude

Kitty Kat, well said despite being a bit callous, although his demeanor noticeably changed after his ban when he returned in ’93.

You very astutely pointed out where the NFL and MLB took separate roads at the fork in the road.

However, there are virtually no Giants fans who would not welcome a Steinbrenner type over an indifferent bow-tie wearing stiff whom you couldn’t pry his pockets open with a crow bar. Post ’93 he was much more subdued and out of the limelight. Not saying it made up for his past transgressions, but stating that he was nothing but a negative human being who took advantage of others is not entirely accurate.

That’s fine if you point out the faults and proclaim that the media will overlook the negative aspects, but the man was highly charitable and had many positive contributions as well that need to be mentioned along with his plethora of faults.

yaheem

The Boss will be missed by this baseball fan. I have an idea why people think this guy is scum, but please tell me what is wrong with wanting winners? I wish any of the owners in the Bay Area wanted to win half as much as Mr. Steinbrenner did. 7 championships and 11 WS appearances since he bought the team in 1973. The Giants got nothing in that time other than some massive heartbreaks. People can say he bought championships, yeah he did, thats why he had so many of ‘em. Imagine being a fan of a team that always had a shot of winning it all. Here in the Bay Area fans get excited by a winning record and the promise of better things next year. Dammit I want winners, and George Steinbrenner did it better than anybody else.

robert rowell

i grew up in NY right across the river from where billy martin lived. i loved the yankees and went to bed every night all summer long with my clock radio tuned in to the Yanks broadcasts. The Boss bought the team the year i before i was born, and thank god. people like KAT have no idea what they’re talking about when they say The Boss was scum. people like that think what they read in the paper is true and believe their own misguided feelings over factual evidence.

The Boss paved the way for free agency, not only in MLB, but in every major sport. The Boss wanted to win, and more often than not, he did, on the biggest stage with the biggest players. there’s nothing wrong with that.

as for the way he treated his employees, all i can say is this: EVERYBODY who plays ball wants to be a Yankee. ’nuff said.

if you can’t find humor in the press conference when martin and The Boss got into it, well, you must be a sad, angry, individual like KAT.

Tap

The boss might have been a prick, but I’m sure we all wish he owned the W’s, the 49ers, and the Giants. He also put a lot of employees children through college.

How strange to think that if you payed a player big money you expected them to perfom.

By the way, did you hear that the Cavs fans offered to help pay Dan Gilbert’s fine of $100K ???Good for him to tell what he was thinking.

Lebron is a great player, should be allowed to play wherever he wants, but he is not like other true champions and never will be because he had to go leave to another team to try and get a ring. The true greats build a championship like, Russell, Kobe, Michael and all the rest.

Why couldn’t the great king Lebron recruit some ballers to come play with him in Cleveland like Wade did in Miami?